New Jersey residents who have both Medicare and Medicaid, known as "dual eligibles," can enroll in a Dual Eligible Special Needs Plan (D-SNP, pronounced "dee-snip"). A D-SNP is a special kind of Medicare managed care plan that coordinates all covered Medicare and Medicaid managed care benefits in one health plan.

If you or a trusted family member or doctor heard about D-SNP health plans and would like to know more about them, please use this web page as a guide to get started. A free Guide about Special Needs Plans is available from Medicare, too. Click here to go to Medicare's SNP Guide.

Dual Special Needs Plan Features:

A team of doctors, specialists, and care managers working together for you

No co-payments, premiums or deductibles

One health plan to coordinate all your Medicare and Medicaid managed care benefits

All the same member rights available to Medicare and Medicaid recipients

Extra Medicare benefits not available under other Medicare or Medicaid plans

D-SNPs may require referrals before you make an appointment to see specialists

Coverage

Most D-SNP covered services are covered by Medicare, and a few are covered exclusively by Medicaid, including dental, vision, hearing aids and fittings, certain private duty nursing services, medical day care, personal care assistance, and 30 days of long-term nursing facility stays.

Generally, when Medicaid covers health care services beyond the limits of Medicare, then Medicaid will pay for what Medicare does not.